M: * clears throat * Anyway... admittedly, it's been a few
weeks since we've seen The Guard.

J: But as it is the first movie that we watched in the name of the
blog, it would be a tragedy not to document it.

M: So Jenna, what was your initial impression?

J: My initial impression was pleasantly surprised. We didn't
have any idea what the movie was about, and walking in late had us at a bit of
a disadvantage. But it very quickly became clear that the movie had action and
(very) dry humor in equal parts. Plus the main character was almost instantly
likable, in a gruff, I might yell at your grandkids kind of way.

M: Indeed! Well said. Did you find you were able to follow
the humor well enough, in spite of the very prominent brogue of the main
character?

J: You mean the very prominent brogue of every single
character? Yes, though I know there were a couple of jokes lost on me. As well
as a couple of the finer plot points. But the general gist was there, and we
even got to hear a few words of traditional Irish, which was probably the
highlight of the film for me.

M: Haha, Let us not forget the brogue-less Don Cheadle! I for
one found myself wondering how he was allegedly understanding so much of what
the other characters were saying, as the "American".

J: Ooh, that's a good point. As the "American," I
found him to be seriously distracting, and more than a little annoying, but I
think maybe that's the point. I didn't realize that obviously he was
understanding everything, while the rest of us were scratching our heads. Maybe
the director/screenwriters were trying to stay away from some of the more
obvious cultural humor?

M: Perhaps! So, you mentioned enjoying the bit of Gaeilge, any other favorite aspects of the film?

Brendan Gleeson, interacting with Meredith's favorite character.

J: Well, I loved that despite the complexities of the plot
(and what police thriller doesn't have more than a few confusing moments,
brogue or no brogue), the main character was delightfully single-minded in his
desire to do the right thing. It made the climax of the film that much more
powerful. Plus he was consistently funny, in quirky, unexpected ways.

M: Excellent. Yes, I also found the conclusion very
satisfying. Conversely, aside from not understanding all of the dialogue, were
there any other drawbacks or low points of note?

J: For me, the super thick brogues were really the main
drawback. I mean, I definitely could have used some subtitles. I'm excited to
go back and watch it again (perhaps in a couple weeks, after the end of our
Irish class) to see if I understood anything more. Other than that, I'm just
not a huge fan of the genre.

M: Fair enough! Anything more (spoilers aside!) you'd like to
add? Would you say that, generally, you liked it? Would you recommend it to a
friend? An enemy?

The bad guys.

J: Haha I'd most certainly recommend this film to a drunken
relative. Does that count? Also, anyone who appreciates a satisfying, if
mysterious, conclusion to a quirky drama with good guys and bad guys.

M: Fantastic! Well, folks. There you have it. We promise not
to take as long on getting to the next one!

J: Tune in next time for more adventures in Brogueland!

M: Mmmm... Brogueland. So, shall we give the folks a head's
up on what's to come and pick a next film?

J: Yes!

M: Velvet Goldmine? Or perhaps one from Mr. McAvoy?

J: I vote Velvet Goldmine, and I'll do some thinking about
Mr. McAvoy.

We can explain...

A hundred years ago, when we were in high school, we bonded over our mutual love of Irish culture. With a little hard work and one traumatizing Student Senate experience, The Irish American Club was born!

Though the club accomplished nothing more than holding a St. Patrick's Day bake sale (which funded some seriously rad t-shirts), we're back again for another try. This time, it's different (we swear!).

We recently spent a year studying beginning Irish Gaelic at the Irish Cultural Center in Kansas City, Missouri. We also both own laptops and enough expendable income to find and view plenty of movies. Then there's the matter of all the time we've discovered we have since graduating from college...

Bottom line: Blog with a Brogue is a chance for us, and you, to delve a little deeper into one of the things we find most fascinating about Irish (or any) culture: the accent. In this blog, we're featuring accents from the Atlantic Archipelago, which includes Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland, and England.

Sit back, grab a pint of your favorite beverage (if it's in a pint glass, it counts), and enjoy!